The ‘forgotten’ city – by leesan
Meeting the sixth-generation owners of a centuries-old pharmacy in Kinmen, China.
The columnist meeting the sisters (from left) Amy and Anna, and Kelly at the 191-year-old pharmacy in Kinmen. — Photos: LEESAN
IN 803AD, the Tang Dynasty government set up five horse ranches in Quanzhou in China’s Fujian Province. One of the ranches was in Wuzhou (known today as Kinmen). Chen Yan was appointed the superintendent of the horse ranches; he arrived in Wuzhou with people from 12 different families to develop this island. He was later upheld as a pioneer in developing Wuzhou.
Back then, Wuzhou was a major salt producing area, with many salt farms set up across the island. As a result, the population started to grow rapidly, and the island enjoyed unparalleled prosperity.
Then, 1,029 years later in 1832, a young man by the name of Yen Ziqing from Dong An district in Fujian made his way to Kinmen with his young brother to seek the help of relatives. They were destitute, and even had to borrow some money in order to bury their deceased parents.
As a learned man, Yen had some knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine and medical practices; he later opened a Chinese pharmacy named Tsunde Chinese Pharmacy specialising in the sale of traditional Chinese herbal medicine.
The pharmacy’s operational philosophy, as the name suggests, is to serve the customers with sincerity and honesty. Yen did not want it to be profit-driven, and hopes that the name of his business could reflect the family’s emphasis on morality and virtue. In fact, Yen and his successors did not only win the respect and support of the local residents, but their business also grew from strength to strength over the years.
Yen was the first-generation pharmacist of the Tsunde Chinese Pharmacy in Kinmen, a business that still exists today.
Traditional Chinese medicine merchants in China about two hundred years ago were very competent in running their businesses, as local residents relied on traditional medicine practices rather than Western medicine.
Because of that, those in this trade commanded a fairly respectable social status. With more and more Chinese people travelling to South-East Asia to make a living, these traders also started selling their herbal medicine in many other parts of the world.
Sure enough, any place on this planet that has a substantial Chinese immigrant population would have these traditional herbal medicines sourced from their ancestral land to help keep them physically healthy.
Back in May, I happened to chance upon this two-century-old Chinese pharmacy located at 38 Juguang Road in Kinmen. The colour of the traditional signboard hung above the door is now dark brown, darkened over the years. The four bronzed characters of the shop’s name are still clearly visible as if shimmering with the values already ingrained into the people of Kinmen.
Fortunately, I managed to meet two of the sisters, Amy and Anna Yen, who are now the sixth-generation owners of this business.
Together with their brother’s girlfriend Yixuan, the sisters were standing at the counter busily picking herbs for their customers. They were not handling just one or two packets of herbs but dozens at a time.
And they typically have to pack hundreds of packets of herbal medicines on any given day.
Notably, most of their orders are from all over the world through online shopping platforms. Amy and Anna’s father, Jimmy, the previous owner of the business, had never imagined that their traditional Chinese herbal medicine shop would be able to reach customers from all over the world, thanks to technology.
Jimmy has always been persistent in following the original medicinal formulations passed down to him by his ancestors, and wants his children to continuing doing the same.
In Tsunde, all Chinese herbs are well selected and the purchase orders are from everywhere.
My travel buddies and I were curious why these three young ladies were willing to give up their big city lifestyles and return to this small island with a population of merely 60,000, just to take over an aged family business. In fact, all four of Jimmy’s children are now back at Kinmen, selling traditional medicine at their beloved Tsunde Chinese Pharmacy store.
Prior to 1949, Tsunde Chinese Pharmacy also doubled as a civil credit bureau in Kinmen. As the pharmacy had to import spices and herbs from South-East Asia during those years, it seized the opportunity to offer itself as one of the institutions providing remittance services to Chinese folks living overseas, and eventually became a leading name in this sector, too.
I have heard from many Chinese Malaysians with ancestral homes in Kinmen that when their grandfathers wanted to write and send a letter, deliver goods, or send money to their families in Kinmen, they would have to seek help from a civil credit bureau. This means their relatives in Kinmen would have to pick up the items or money from the pharmacy. Therefore, it is not difficult to imagine what kind of social status the pharmacy commanded back in the day.
However, in 1949, after the Chinese nationalist government retreated to Kinmen, such remittance services were banned, and Tsunde Chinese Pharmacy had no choice but to shut down that part of their business, and just focus on selling herbal medicine.
As time goes by, market demands for Chinese and Western medicines is starting to grow in very different ways.
How will Tsunde Chinese Pharmacy, with a history of almost 200 years, survive in such a challenging business environment?
As the sixth-generation heirs, the young Yen siblings have an immense burden on their shoulders. They must make sure this 191-year-old traditional Chinese medicine shop can continue to operate and even prosper. Their father had been persistent in following the original formulations passed down to him through the generations, because the taste of traditional Chinese herbs would only be pure if one were to stick to the original, unmodified formulations. Such a business philosophy has been deeply planted into the hearts of his children since young.
Now, in the hands of its sixth-generation owners, Tsunde Chinese Pharmacy remains devoted to this family teaching: “Although people may not see your virtue, Heaven will know if you keep it in your heart.”
As for the visitors to Kinmen, the pharmacy is more than just another Chinese medicine shop; it is also a kind of invaluable cultural experience. Walking into the shop, you will be greeted with the pungent aroma of all the varieties of Chinese herbs displayed on the medicine shelves.
All this is a veritable manifestation of the historical and cultural
significance of Tsunde Chinese Pharmacy which has become a part of the life of Kinmen’s residents from 191 years ago.
Leesan, a globetrotter who has travelled to 137 countries, seven continents and enjoys sharing his travel stories and insights. He has also authored five books.
Published in STAR 2, 23 June 2023
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